Montreal Canadiens fans don’t get a lot of breaking news in the month of August so here at A Winning Habit, we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 31 prospects currently in the Habs organization. Each player was carefully deliberated by our writers and ranked accordingly. Today we continue with the 5th ranked prospect, Joshua Roy.
Roy was a highly touted prospect coming out of minor hockey after leading Quebec’s Midget AAA League in scoring with 88 points in 42 games in his final season with the Levis Chevaliers. The native of St-George-de-Beauce, would subsequently be selected 1st overall by the Saint John Sea Dogs in the 2019 QMJHL Draft, and the hope was for him to be the focal point of their rebuild. Things did not go according to plan however as Roy struggled with just 44 points in 60 games in his rookie year. Midway through the next season he would be dealt to the Sherbrooke Phoenix for a massive haul and while he was showing some improvement he was still just a point a game player. As a result, Roy was not highly rated going into the 2021 NHL Draft.
The Canadiens took a flier on the local kid and chose him in the fifth round at 150th overall. Hoping he was a late bloomer and would ultimately be able to deliver on the promise he had shown early in his career, they viewed him as a good late round dart throw. Roy quickly proved them right as he exploded the very next season, leading the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in scoring with 119 points in 66 games. Roy followed that with another solid performance recording 99 points over 55 games this past year, his last in junior hockey.
Roy’s stock really soared to new heights with his exceptional play in back to back appearances at the World Juniors, where he played a key role in helping lead Canada to consecutive gold medals in 2022 and 2023. Roy was widely praised for his ability to play a more defensive role, including being used on the penalty kill for the first time in his career. In addition to showing enormous growth in his 200 foot game, he also scored several timely goals and was one of Canada’s most trusted and dangerous forwards. With 19 points in 14 games over two tournaments, Roy surpassed Jonathan Huberdeau as the highest scoring Quebec-born player in WJHC history.
Roy has turned himself into an incredibly useful player who can play in all situations. The ability to adapt his game as needed may be his best attribute. The Canadiens draftee projects to be an outstanding middle six winger in the NHL who can play up and down the lineup. To me, he is the best all around prospect in the organization. There are those who have more high-end offensive ability and others that are better shutdown defenders but nobody else has his combination of both.
Slated for a job in Laval this upcoming season, it will be fascinating to watch Roy transition to the professional ranks. He has been on both ends of the expectations spectrum so one thing is for certain, Joshua Roy will be ready for whatever comes his way.
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